Friday, June 1, 2007

The Bible – Part III

Now that we understand the functions of the Bible as outlined in my earlier postings (see Parts I and II), we have an idea of what the Bible is. Now let’s look at what the Bible isn’t, because it’s important to understand that too.

History

The Bible is not a history book, even though it contains a fair amount of history. Those historical narratives have been found to be remarkably accurate from what we can determine from other sources. But if somebody uncovers an apparent inaccuracy or contradiction in the historical narrative, we shouldn’t come to the conclusion that the Bible is full of errors and no good. The history is there mainly to instruct us regarding how God interacts with people and how God is active in history, not as a precise record of historical events.

Science

The Bible isn’t a science book either. The Bible tells what God did in the realm of nature, but doesn’t necessarily explain how God did it. How God did some things is left to science to try to explain.

Unfortunately, we don’t always get the best answers from science because science tries to explain things apart from God. Therefore, the scientific explanations are missing a key aspect, because scientists feel it is necessary to eliminate God so they can maintain objectivity and scientific integrity. Yet you can’t help but see God in the order and complexity of the universe.

We also have to realize that science isn’t infallible – only God is. Watch out when somebody states that something has been “scientifically proven,” because that is usually not a valid statement. Science, as we all know, is constantly making new discoveries and developing new theories based on new evidence. Something is rarely scientifically proven beyond a doubt. If it is, then it becomes a law of nature, such as gravity. Usually the research demonstrates that a theory looks like it may be correct, but rarely is something proven with absolute certainty. I’ll put my trust in what God tells me, and let the scientists battle out the details.